Valves



3,008,479 VALVES Joseph J. Mancusi, Jr., Eastchester, N.Y., assignor. toAltair, Inc., Terr-yville, Conm, a corporation of New York Filed Feb.10, 1959,, Ser. No. 792,352 1 Claim. (Cl. 137-68) This invention relatesto valves and more particularly to valves of the seal piercing type.

Present day high performance aircraft and missiles use high pressure gasstorage containers as primary and emergency sources of fluid power.Because of the exceedingly high pressures in these containers and thelong storage periods, valves for control of the .flow of this gas mustafiord a more positive seal than can be attained through normal methodsof flow sealing. 'To accomplish this, the approach previously taken hasinvolved rupture of a metallic'member through the action of an explosivecharge against a piston. Such operation is dangerous and dependent uponthe storage life of the explosive charge under vastly varyingconditions. 7

The object of this invention is to improve the reliability and affordsafer operation.

Applicant has devised a valve wherein a solid disc is ruptured by apiercing needle upon the closure of an electrical circuit which burns afuse wire in two. The burning of the fuse wire enables a biased springto unlock a valve element which is then driven down by a strong springto cause the piercing needle carried by it to rupture the disc.

These and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention willbe apparent from a reading of the following description when consideredwith the drawing which discloses by way of example a preferredembodiment of .the invention in vertical cross-section.

The valve is shown as being mounted on topofa container or-bottle 10which would contain a gas, such as air, under exceedingly high pressure.v

The valve is comprised of a main body 12 and an end '88 and isthreadedly received at its lower end in the upper plug 14 threaded intothe upper open end of the body 12 which generally defines a verticalcylinder. The lowerend of the body carries a suitable male inlet fitting16 across the end of which is suitably afiixed, as by welding, a metaldisc 18 of such dimension as to be able to withstand the high pressuresobtaining in a container 10 while being readily rupturable when thevalve is actuated. The inlet fitting 16 may be threaded into the upperend of the bottle 10 Projecting laterally from the lower end of thevalve body 12 is a female outlet fitting 20 The inlet and outlet portsof the valve are thus near each other and the free flow of gas from thebottle is expedited through a chamber 22 formed in the lower end of thevalve body 12 and with which each of the ports communicates directly.

As observed earlier, the valve releases the gas in the bottle 10 byrupturing the disc 18. To this end, a piercing needle 24 is fixed to theunderside of a hollow, cylindrical valve element 26 slidably mountedwithin a tubular guide 28 depending from the end plug 14. A heavycompression spring 36 surrounds the tubular guide and reacts between theend plug 14 and a laterally extending flange 26a to provide the drivingforce whereby the valve element 26 is impelled to carry the piercingneedle 24 through the rupturable seal 18.

The valve element is, however, normally retained in the retractedposition of the drawing by a locking mechanism. This mechanism includesa pair of locking balls 32 respectively carried in diametricallydisposed openings 26b formed in the upper end of the cylindrical valveelement 26. These balls normally cooperate with a groove ice 28a cut inthe interior surface of the fixed tubular guide '28. It can be seen thatwhen the balls are forcibly held so as to protrude into the groove 28a,the valve element 26 carrying the piercing needle 24 will be restrainedfrom undergoing movement because of the bias of the spring30 and thuspiercing the disc seal 18.

"The locking balls 32 are forcibly held in the groove.

28a by conical cam block 34 slidably disposed within the cylindricalvalve element "-26. The cam block 34 is part of .an integral assemblyheld in an upper position by, an unburnt fuze wire 36. The assemblyincludes a cylindrical release carriage 38, a fuze wire anchor 40, andaninverted U-cup seal 42. The components of the assembly are all heldtogether by a screw 44 which passes through openings in the fuze wireanchor 40 and the release carriage end of the conical cam block 3-4. Theinverted U-cup seal 42 is clamped between the cam block 34 and the re-"lease carriage 38.

As has been noted, the unburnt fuze wire 36 holds the assembly in theupper position wherein the conical cam block 34 holds the balls 32intheir protruded locking position. This upper position is determined bythe engagementof the upper end of the release carriage with theunderside of the end plug 14. A rubber U-channeled ring 46 caps theupper end of the release carriage38 to provide the cushion against whichthe fuze wire 36 may be tightly drawn during assembly to eliminate freeplay within the through two electrical terminals 48 suitably secured inopenings formed in a terminalplate 50 extending across a central openingin-the end plug 14. This-plate and hence the terminals are fixedly heldin place by an overlying securing 'plate '52 aflixed to the uppersurface of theend plug '14 by screws 54. Any suitable source ofelectrical 'current'would be appropriately connected to .the two fuzeterminals 48. v

When current of appropriate amperage is passed through the fuze wire 36,it burns in two. This releases the integral assembly and the releasespring '47 drives it downward, downward movement of the conical camblock 34 within the cylindrical valve element 26 being accommodated by avent 26c in the lower end of the valve element. At some point in thisdownward travel, the surface of the conical cam block 34 will havereceded to where the locking balls 32 may be forced out of the groove28a in the tubular guide 28 by the action of the compression spring 30upon the valve element 26. As soon as these locking balls clear thegroove 28, the valve element 26 will have been unlocked and will behurled downward under continued action of the valve spring 30. This willcause the piercing needle to be punched through the disc seal 18,thereby rupturing the seal and allowing the gas under high pressure inthe container 10 to flow upward through the inlet fitting 16 into thechamber 22 and then out through the outlet fitting 20.

With the arrival of gas under pressure in the chamber 22, there will ofcourse be a force acting against the lower end of the valve element 26tending to drive it upward ilke a piston. Now the valve element may havebeen driven downward by the valve spring 30 until it abutted theshoulder 12a formed in the body 12 by the chamber 22. In this abuttingposition, the ball carrying openings 26b are aligned with a groove 28bformed in the interior surface of the guide 28. The groove 28b is ofsuch size as to receive the balls 32 sufiiciently to allow the conicalcam block 34 to move therepast. Such action will occur because the gaspressure in the chamber 22 will be transmitted through the vent 260against the lower end of the conical cam block 34 to drive it upward.Such action takes place before the valve element 26 can be drivenupwardly because the release spring 47 is now exerting little or noforce upon the integral assembly. The assembly will move upward untilthe cushion ring abuts the end plug 14 and a gas seal will obtain atthis point because of the Teflon -U-cup seal 42. With the establishmentof the seal, there will be no active forces upon the valve element 26 sothat it may remain in its abutting position with the shoulder 12abecause of the bias of the spring 30. The piercing needle 24 will beprotruding into the ruptured disc 18.

In operation, the valve works as follows: When the gas under pressure inthe container is to be utilized, a suitable electrical circuit includingthe terminals 48 and the fuze wire 36 would be closed to burn the fuzewire in two. This enables the release spring 47 to drive the integralassembly downwards to where the balls 32 may move completely out of thegrooves 28a. This, in turn, enables the valve spring 30 to drive thevalve element 26 downwards so that the piercing needle 24 ruptures themetal disc 18 to release the gas in the container 10. Gas now flowsupward through the inlet fitting 16, through the valve chamber 22, andout of the valve through the outlet port 20 and on to the fluid pressuresystem in which it is to be employed.

In addition, the gas moves upward through the vent 260 to drive theintegral assembly upward into a position abutting the end plug 14.Escape of gas through the central openings'in the end plug is preventedby the inverted Teflon cup seal 42. It is possible that the valveelement 26 will be driven upwards initially upon the rupturing of themetal disc 18; however, it eventually stabilizes in a downward position.Whether it is displaced after disc rupture or not, and what finalposition it eventually assumes, are not critical. The ruptured disc willpass sutficient gas whether the piercing needle remains in a penetratedposition or not. In fact it is not necessary to provide the groove 28bin the guide 28, for if the balls 32 are unable to move outwardlysufficiently to clear the conical cam block 34, the entire set ofmovable parts including the integral assembly and the valve element willbe driven upward until the assembly engages the end plug.

It can be seen that applicant has devised a valve embodying a seal thatis so positive that its perfectness is determined only by thepermeability limits of the metal or other material employed in the disc18. Furthermore, a most reliable way of controlling the release ofbottled gas has been created. Moreover, a valve that is safe from beingoperated by jarring has been obtained for the tensile strength of thefuze wire can be designed to safeguard the valve against all the roughhandling that can occur in normal operation.

Applicant has disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention. It isapparent that the invention may be embodied in other and differentembodiments. Accordingly, it is intended to be limited only by the scopeof the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

In a valve, a housing having a flow passage therethrough and means forcontrolling fluid flow through said flow passage and a guide, a valveelement coacting with said means and slidably mounted in said guide formovement from a first to a second position to cause said means to adjustfluid flow, spring means biasing the valve element to move from itsfirst to its second position, a groove in said guide, an opening in saidelement that is aligned with the groove when the element is in its firstposition, a ball in said open ing, a conical cam block slidably mountedin thevalve element and operative in its home position to hold said ballin said element opening so thatthe ball projects into said groove andprevents said spring means from moving said valve element from its firstposition, second spring means biasing said conical cam block from itshome position, and a fuze wire holding said cam block in its homeposition.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS824,935 Ienczewsky July 3, 1906 1,065,169 Owrey June 17, 1913 2,417,374Morton Mar. 11, 1947 2,586,248 Newman Feb. 19, 1952 2,638,106 'ShielsMay 12, 1953 2,697,538 Seeler Dec. 21, 1954 2,950,022 Boyer Aug. 23,1960

